Chapter 93

【Chapter 4, Part 2】

To be honest, for Osvold, it wasn't particularly unusual for one of his brothers to try to kill him.

The eldest brother was indifferent and never even glanced at Osvold. The third brother, Emile, claimed neutrality, not harming Osvold but offering no help either.

And the remaining three brothers had always disliked Osvold since childhood, repeatedly tormenting him with words and force.

"Ha ha ha!"

"..."

His bangs were grabbed forcefully, and he lifted his face from the cold water. This was in the castle's courtyard, beside a fountain that had since been demolished.

"What's wrong? Are you suffocating?"

Osvold finally managed to breathe, taking shallow breaths as he realized this was not the real world but merely a replay of memories.

(I'm dreaming about my childhood.)

He realized this as he heard his brothers' laughter.

"Truly, Brother Niklas! To already master water magic like that!"

"Of course! But it's frustrating that the target resists, making the practice inefficient."

The second brother said this, leaning in to look at Osvold's face. It seemed this was a dream based on an actual event.

"Monsters are useless, aren't they? What do you think, Osvold?"

"..."

As Osvold silently stared at his brother, the brother frowned in disgust.

"You're disgusting. Half of your blood is lowly, yet your magic power is so high."

"..."

"You're not our brother. Father never even acknowledged you as a prince and placed you in this castle! So..."

Osvold was kicked and fell back into the fountain where his face had just been submerged.

"No one will come to your aid, even if we play with you like this...!"

"Cough, cough...!!"

All of this was true, as his brothers said.

If Osvold strongly resisted and retaliated, he would face even worse treatment. As a prince, they had value, but Osvold, whose existence was concealed, had none.

"You are an unnecessary person. No matter how excellent you are, you can never become king."

"..."

"Even with high divine power, you are unwanted, so no one will protect you. And eventually, you will be sold off somewhere. That's it—"

One of his brothers laughed and mentioned a certain name.

"For example, like Charlotte."

"..."

Reflecting on it, at that time, Osvold still didn't know about the girl named Charlotte. Therefore, when this event actually happened, he silently endured his brothers' violence without a word.

"Brother, this guy doesn't even know Charlotte. He can't talk to anyone but us."

"Oh, right! I'll tell you, Osvold. Charlotte is a trophy Father won in battle!"

The words his brother spoke about Charlotte made Osvold's eardrums vibrate.

"Someone with the power of a saint is usually a valuable asset, right? Yet, the enemy country gladly handed her over like an object."

"..."

"Surely, she, like you, has tainted blood! No matter how much power she has, she is still unwanted. Remember, no one will come to help someone as unnecessary as you... Gah!?"

Osvold's punch sent one of his brothers flying. The remaining two brothers were speechless, turning to look. His fist hurt, but he didn't care.

"O-Osvold...?"

(This is just a dream.)

It had no real meaning. Still, the young Osvold slowly took a step out of the fountain.

"Do you even know what you're doing to me!?"

"..."

Just as he was about to raise his fist again, a bolt of lightning struck his body.

"Ugh, ah...!"

He was hit head-on by his brother's lightning magic and crumpled. Osvold's magic power was sealed by his father, so he couldn't use magic.

"Don't surprise me...!! With tainted blood, how dare you do this to your brother!!"

"..."

"I was being gentle. It seems I need to make you realize again!"

The two brothers approached Osvold and prepared to cast more magic.

"Causing a magic power surge and killing your own mother. You—..."

"..."

As he glared at his brother with determination, a loud voice called out to Osvold in the dream.

"Osvold-samaaaaaa!!"

"!"

The illusions of his brothers vanished like mist. The shock that hit him was not from the lightning magic.

"...Charlotte"

The body of the young Osvold was clung to by a small girl with golden hair.

"Is this a dream, an illusion!? The young Osvold-sama, really, in reality!?"

"..."

"Ahhhh...!! The heartbeat! So strong, even though you're so young...!!"

Charlotte's blue eyes sparkled with a brilliance that blew everything away.

"Being able to hear the heartbeat that confirms you are alive makes me so happy...!!"

(You really are...)

Seeing her beaming face, Osvold exhaled deeply. The reason his brothers' illusions disappeared was because Charlotte appeared.

(You always genuinely rejoice in my mere existence.)

Only Charlotte herself didn't know how much of a relief this was.

"Charlotte"

Looking down at her young self, Osvold said,

"This is a dream and an illusion. We are in a world different from reality."

"Ah!! That's right!!"

Then, Charlotte moved away from Osvold, displaying the same energetic behavior as her adult self, with a proud smile.

"The 'Meeting in a Dream' plan!! It was a great success, Osvold-sama!!"

"...Yeah"

"Yaaahhhh!! The smile of the young Osvold-sama, limited to the dream...!!"

Charlotte's excited voice was higher than usual, childishly lisping, making it clear that this was a dream.

"Now..."

The reason Osvold and Charlotte decided to 'meet in a dream' was triggered by the diary Charlotte opened before this dream.